Jehangir Rashid
Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, Mar 17: When the Election Commission of India (ECI) sounded the bugle for by-polls for Srinagar-Budgam and Anantnag-Pulwama Lok Sabha seats, Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) said that it will field candidates for both the seats.
However, as on date it seems that the party has decided not to fight the elections. This has become evident with delay in announcing the names of candidates for the two Lok Sabha seats going to polls next month.
Sources told Early Times that the decision of National Conference and Congress to fight the elections jointly has forced the BJP leadership to re-think over its initial plan of fighting the up-coming parliamentary elections. As such on date it seems that BJP has given up its plan to fight the by-polls for Central Kashmir and South Kashmir Lok Sabha seats.
"The state unit of BJP has been maintaining that the decision to take part in the elections would be taken by the central leadership. Given the fact that top notch leaders of BJP in New Delhi are in constant touch with Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Pres...

Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 17: A senior doctor at one of the premier hospitals of Jammu is referring patients to private clinics in lieu of commission.
The doctor, who happens to be a specialist, has adopted a new method of fleecing gullible patients by referring them to private clinics, said sources.
"I went to this doctor at the hospital with minor complication. He, instead, exaggerated my illness, saying that if I would have been late by a day, the problem would have aggravated," said a patient hailing from far flung area of Poonch.
He said without even touching him, the doctor asked him to undergo surgery, "which will be done at a private clinic."
"When I rushed to the clinic na...

Early Times Report
srinagar, Mar 17: Call it embarrassment or expose of the government claims of making the country digital. The Radio Kashmir Srinagar, controlled directly by the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, is functioning without internet facility.
The revelation was made by none other than the radio station itself, that too in a live program.
The anchor of a radio show called 'Hum Sath Sath Hai' (We all are together), broadcast on Friday at 6.30 pm, on Radio Kashmir's 103.5 FM, said during the live programme that due to no internet facility available at the station, she couldn't broadcast the messages coming from the listeners in the show.
The anchor while strivin...

Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 17: The Government of India (GoI) has decided to rein in the separatists on its own as the soft policy of Jammu and Kashmir government towards separatists' is sending a wrong message across the country, sources told Early Times.
They said the Intelligence agencies have provided inputs to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) about separatists being in touch with their mentors sitting across the Line of Control (LoC) and taking directions from them. "The people sitting across the LoC have asked the separatists to use all their resources to ensure poll boycott and keep people away from the polling booths," sources said.
They said that separatists have been a...

Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 17: Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not authoritarian in his approach and is open to ideas.
She said contrary to perception and allegations by some, the PM is not centralised. The PM "wants to make it a true federal system in the country and has the moral authority to do it," Mehbooba said on Friday at the India Today conclave at Mumbai. The function was also attended by many CMs.
Mehbooba, with her statement, has not only blunted the allegations against the PM but has also boosted her party's alliance with the BJP in the state.
"The PM may be authoritarian for other people including his cabinet colleagues, but ...

Arun Singh
Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 17: Not giving a damn to the Public Service Guarantee Act (PSGA), which was brought to ensure delivery of public services within specified time period, the Transport department is making inordinate delay in issuing of driving licences.
In order to provide essential services to the public, around five services of the Transport department were notified under the PSGA. One of them is driving licence, which has to be issued within 30 days.
"The driving licence is issued by Regional Transport Officer/Assistant Regional Transport Officer, but in case of the five designated officers including three in Jammu region and two in Kashmir region, nearly one l...

Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 17: Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and former Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister, Ghulam Nabi Azad, is at the receiving end. This time because of the Congress' very poor performance in UP of which he was the in-charge. The Congress could win only 7 seats in the 403-member House in alliance with the Samajwadi Party and came fifth. It was the poorest ever performance of the Congress which had ruled UP for decades.
The infighting in the Congress escalated with UP Congress leader Naseeb Pathan putting the onus on Azad for the poor show in UP and demanded his resignation.
"Ghulam Nabi Azad misled the Congress party. He is responsible for the loss in the asse...

Early Times Report
srinagar, Mar 17: With separatists hell-bent on sabotaging the upcoming by-polls for Srinagar and Anantnag parliamentary seats, the state government is planning to cage the senior leadership.
Sources close to the Home Ministry in the state government said there were credible inputs that free movement of separatists in the coming days would be detrimental to the prospects of free and fair polls.
Sources said the separatists are planning to start a door- to-door campaign in the twin constituencies and that any such development would threaten the potential voters.
Sources said the Hurriyat leaders have almost divided the areas for anti-poll campaign between the Hurriyat...

Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 17: Raising question over posting of police inspector, Ravi Singh who had tortured and implicated him a fake case, the victim today apprehended, the officer may further implicate him in false cases, as he has been posted in Crime Branch Jammu.
Victim of Police atrocities, Rohit Gupta son of Hem Raj Gupta, said that despite Union Home Ministry's order to DGP and Home department J&K, to take appropriate action against accused Police Officer for illegal detention of a citizen, the erring officer not only went scot free, but got promoted, and now has been posted in Crime Branch Jammu.
"Since, I'm fighting against the atrocities committed by the officer on me, h...

Early Times Report
Srinagar, Mar 17: In a move, that has surprised many in the state's administrative circles, the government has ordered that AC, nazool, would replace ACR, Srinagar, as head of the investigation team that has been constituted to probe into the alleged encroachment of 75 kanals of government land in Old Srinagar city's General Bagh area which is close to the central jail.
Earlier, on the direction of Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, DC, Srinagar, had a few days back ordered to stop the construction work of several structures on 75 kanals of government land at General Bagh.
As already reported, a huge chunk of government land at General Bagh has been grabbed by people in...

Saahil Suhail
Early Times Report
Anantnag, Mar 17: Cinematographer-turned-politician, Mufti Tassaduq Hussain is all set to begin his poll campaign from South Kashmir's Anantnag district on Saturday, PDP office bearers informed Early Times.
They informed that Mufti Tassaduq Hussain son of PDP founder late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed will visit Anantnag on Saturday to address a huge gathering at Dak Banglow Khanabal. "This function will mark the beginning of poll campaign," they added.
At Anantnag, Party leaders said that they have made all the arrangements for making the function successful. "First impression is the last impression. So we have made special arrangements. We are also expecting ...

Saqib Ahmad
Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, Mar 17: Around two cases of assaults on government employees get reported on an average daily in Jammu and Kashmir with 1587 cases having been registered for the last three years in the state.
As per official figures of the Police Department, accessed by Early Times, 516 cases of assaults on government employees were reported in 2016. 536 and 535 cases were registered during 2014 and 2015, respectively.
"Many such cases go unreported as employees sometimes not come forward with complaints," a police official said.
The official said numerous incidents have been reported in the state when government employees including store keepers, plumbers a...

Early Times Report
JAMMU, Mar 17: After the liquidation of Burhan Wani, poster boy of pro-Pakistan militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen, video of his successor Zakir Rashid alias Moosa has hit the social media networks in the restive and militant-infested Kashmir. In the 12 minute long video Moosa is also seen motivating militants and stone throwers to "fight for supremacy of Islam" in Kashmir. Donning an Afghani cap, Moosa has recorded the video in chaste Urdu with AK rifle seen by his side, at some yet to be identified location.
"Whenever we are fighting with gun or throwing stones, this should not be for nationalism but for Islam", he repeatedly says. In the same vein, he goes on to warn...

Nitish Bhardwaj
Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 17: No state championship for weight lifters has been held since 2011, due to indifference of the authorities.
Young lifters of Jammu are not getting the opportunity to show their hidden talent in state championship as higher authorities are not supporting them.
Sources said that from 2011 till date , no state championship has been organized for the weight lifters.
Although team goes for nationals but without any screening by the authority,. The lifterd are randomly choosen and those who deserves didn't get the chance to show their talent added by the source.
Former weight lifter told Early Times that they have recently organized a cam...